AI-900 Is Becoming AI-901: What Changed in Azure AI Fundamentals

There is a confusing thing happening with Azure AI Fundamentals in 2026, and most of the web is getting it wrong. The AI-900 exam retires June 30, 2026. The Azure AI Fundamentals certification does not retire. It continues through a new exam, AI-901. If you only read headlines, you might think the entry-level Azure AI credential is going away. It is not; only the exam behind it is changing, and the new one covers more.

Cert facts trace to the official Microsoft Learn pages, linked inline, and reflect the June 2026 check. Verify current status there before you book.

Exam versus certification: the distinction that matters here

A certification is the credential you hold. An exam is the test you sit to earn it. They are not the same thing, and Microsoft sometimes swaps the exam behind a certification while keeping the certification itself.

That is exactly what is happening with Azure AI Fundamentals. The certification stays. The exam moves from AI-900 to AI-901. So:

• If you already hold Azure AI Fundamentals from passing AI-900, you keep it. Fundamentals certifications do not expire.
• If you are starting now, book AI-901, not AI-900. The AI-900 exam retires June 30, 2026, and you cannot earn a certification from a retired exam.
• Study guides written for AI-900 are now partly out of date, because the new exam adds material the old one did not test.

What AI-901 added

The headline change is that AI-901 brings the certification into the generative-AI era. Where AI-900 was weighted toward classic AI workloads, AI-901 adds generative AI, Copilot fundamentals, retrieval-augmented generation, and grounding, and centers the practical half of the exam on Microsoft Foundry.

Per the official exam page, AI-901 is organized into two areas: identifying AI concepts and responsibilities (around 40 to 45 percent) and implementing AI solutions using Microsoft Foundry (around 55 to 60 percent), with a passing score of 700. There are no formal prerequisites, though basic cloud familiarity helps, and a practice assessment was not yet available at the time of writing. Confirm the current weightings on the exam page, since a new exam’s outline can be refined.

That shift is also why pre-2024 “AI-900 is pretty basic” reviews are an unreliable guide to AI-901: the published scope now includes the generative-AI concepts that sit at the center of most real AI work. AI-901 is a new exam, so treat its difficulty as not yet well characterized rather than assuming the old fundamentals bar still applies.

Who should take it

AI-901 is the entry-level signal for anyone working in or around Microsoft AI: citizen developers adding AI to low-code apps, analysts, and people moving toward the Azure AI or architect tracks. It is conceptual grounding rather than a job-getter on its own. Treat it as the vocabulary layer that makes the Associate and Expert credentials easier, not as a credential that lands a role by itself.

One note for partner-minded readers: Fundamentals are generally excluded from Solutions Partner skilling scores, so earn AI-901 for your own grounding, not for partner points; verify the current partner rules before relying on that.

How it fits the bigger picture

AI-901 is the entry rung on more than one path. It opens the AI solution architect path (AI-901, then AI-103, then AB-100) and serves as the AI-vocabulary layer for the low-code AI builder path. It is also part of the broader 2026 reshuffle, where several exams retire and new ones replace them; for the full map, see the Power Platform certification guide and how a Power Platform architect keeps up with the changes.

Train for it

To pursue AI-901 itself, start from the official exam page and Microsoft’s free Learn path for the outline and to book. For the deeper Power Platform, Copilot, and AI capabilities the credential ladder rewards, Citizen Development Academy teaches them, built and delivered by Microsoft Certified Trainers. Explore the courses to build that foundation. Citizen Development Academy is a Microsoft Learning Partner; partner status governs the standards under which we deliver Microsoft training, and Microsoft does not endorse this article or the AI-901 exam.

FAQ

Is Azure AI Fundamentals being retired?

No. Only the AI-900 exam retires (June 30, 2026). The Azure AI Fundamentals certification continues through the AI-901 exam. If you hold the certification from AI-900, you keep it.

Should I book AI-900 or AI-901?

If you are starting now, book AI-901. The AI-900 exam retires June 30, 2026, and a retired exam cannot earn you the certification. Only sit AI-900 if you are already scheduled to pass before that date.

What is different about AI-901?

AI-901 adds generative AI, Copilot fundamentals, RAG, and grounding, and weights the practical half of the exam toward Microsoft Foundry. That is why study material written for AI-900 is now incomplete.

Does the certification expire?

No. Azure AI Fundamentals is a Fundamentals certification, so it does not expire once earned, whether through AI-900 or AI-901.